Growing up, Chris Post watched as his mom juggled her collegiate studies and motherhood, balancing everyday life with dreams of earning her Ph.D.

And while field excursions with his biologist mom are a memory of his childhood, the impact of place is something this cultural and historical geographer seeks to define today. Earning a Ph.D. of his own, Dr. Post knows that what we leave behind says a lot about where we are headed.

Ashley Spellman is no stranger to the kitchen. For seven months, she worked daily rolling out dough to make pies. She learned how to cook them just right – with a bubbly filling and a golden-brown crust.

She enjoyed her job, but she also knew her future held more than transforming apples into a perfectly baked pastry. She attended college once, shortly after graduating from Waterloo High School. She dropped out within two weeks. The university was too big, and “just too much” for this once self-described shy teen.